


The "Abduction" of Nagisa

by Xyliandra



Series: Reigisa Week [14]
Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-29
Updated: 2016-01-11
Packaged: 2018-04-11 20:04:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4450409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xyliandra/pseuds/Xyliandra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oral historians are notorious for omitting, embellishing, and inventing details. History is often distorted for the sake of greater entertainment value. It is a point of contention for Rei, who is still very sore over the whole thing. Nagisa, on the other hand, thinks it's hilarious.</p><p>Rei would like to set the record straight.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

There are some who would tell you that Rei was cruel and unjust. But Rei was fond of order and he had little patience for frivolity. Order was necessary for balance. And balance was essential in both the mortal and immortal realms.

But to consider a strict adherence to the rules as unjust would be preposterous. Leading the underworld was not his first choice in occupations, but it was the hand he was dealt. Rei would sooner switch places with Prometheus before he completed a task perfunctorily, so he led the underworld with the utmost efficiency.

Rei did not stray from the underworld often. It was not that he was confined to his domain, as ill informed mortals may proclaim. Rather, Rei prefered not to deviate from his routine. There were occasions he made exceptions, naturally.

The day he met Nagisa was one such occasion.

 


	2. First Episode

Despite his seemingly cold and severe personality, Rei had a penchant for beauty. Unfortunately, presiding over the underworld did not afford him that luxury often. And so, on occasion, Rei would allow himself to venture to the mortal realm to indulge. He would disguise himself as mortal and take pleasure in a number of beautiful activities, such as partaking in theatrical performances (always tragedies, of course; the crude humor of comedies were Not Beautiful) or perusing the wares of local artisans. On that day, he had elected to walk through fields of Nysa; the landscape of the area was quite lovely and he always found comfort is walking among its splendor.

Unfortunately, the field’s magnificence had attracted other visitors.

Rei’s face furrowed into a scowl as a woman bumped into his carelessly, never bothering with an apology. How crass. Countless women flooded the plains like the bodies of water entrusted to their care. They were haphazardly grabbing at branches and stalks, roughly ripping the delicate flowers from their perches. Rei lamented the inelegant treatment nature was enduring at the hand of these women.

He fully intended to away with utmost urgency- he could hardly stand to watch this an assault on such beauty- when another body brushed against him. Rei opened his mouth to snap at the careless woman, but his words caught in his throat as he gazed upon the stranger. He was completely mesmerized by the bright magenta eyes that peered up at him.

“Oh my gosh! I am so so sorry!” the stranger gasped, eyes wide. “You’re not hurt are you? I really didn’t mean I to! I-”

“No problem,” Rei heard himself saying, surprising both himself and the stranger. Rei found he could not pull his gaze away from the shorter man before him as he beamed in response.

“I really am sorry,” he apologized again, rubbing the back of his head with a slight laugh. Rei couldn’t help but follow the movements, captivated by the grace by which he moved.

“Nagisa! You really need to watch where you’re going!” a voice called, causing both to turn towards the brunette rushing towards them. “Sorry,” she spoke to Rei, adjusting the quiver on her back before grabbing Nagisa’s arm. “He’s a klutz and didn’t mean any harm.”

“I said that!” Nagisa pouted slightly. “Well, not the klutz part.” He turned back to Rei to find that he was already staring. Nagisa smiled as Rei blushed in response to being caught.

“We’ll be going now.” The brunette tugged on Nagisa’s arm insistently. She managed to pull Nagisa a few steps before Nagisa snapped to attention.

“Ran! Wait!” Nagisa pulled his arm free and moved to a nearby tree. He plucked a large blossom off and walked back to Rei. Nagisa popped onto his tiptoes and leaned forward to gently tuck the flower behind Rei’s ear. “Sorry again for knocking into you,” he apologized, stepping back from Rei to smile up at him.

Ran dragged Nagisa away with a forced smile, hissing “Don’t you know who that is?” as soon as she thought they were out of earshot. Rei was quite certain he was a undoubtedly unflattering shade of red at that point, but then Nagisa winked at him, and he felt his face heat up anew. Rei followed Nagisa with his eyes until he lost sight of the pair amongst the tittering crowd. 

Rei looked around the field and found it lacking the beauty he had come seeking. With a great sigh, Rei returned home.


	3. Second Episode

Nagisa was beautiful.

Rei tried distracting himself with the countless duties bestowed up him, but it proved fruitless. He could not stop thinking of those eyes that sparkled like gemstones. He could not stop thinking of hair that shone like gold. He could not stop thinking about a smile that shone brighter than the stars and laughter that sounded like music and lips that pursed into the cutest frown and there was no logic in the way Nagisa monopolized his thoughts and he needed to know more about Nagisa.

So Rei began to watch Nagisa.

He watched Nagisa dance among fields of flowers.

He watched Nagisa coax fruit out from stubborn trees.

He watched Nagisa laugh as he visited with nymphs.

Each time Rei saw Nagisa, he grew more and more infatuated.

He found himself watching Nagisa more and more. There were times when Rei forgot himself, spending hours with Nagisa as the shorter god completed a number of mundane tasks that seemed breathtaking at Nagisa’s hands. Rei’s advisor was took note of Rei’s prolonged absences (it would be impossible not to, really) and expressed his reservations with Rei spending so much time in the mortal realm. But Rei brushed off Sera’s concerns. He was still performing his duties and he was stealthy is his observances, so there was no real cause for concern.

Or rather, Rei _believed_ he was stealthy. Up until the day Nagisa walked straight up to the shrubs Rei has concealed himself behind and pushed the branches aside to reveal a shell-shocked Rei.

“Hello again!” Nagisa chirped with an exuberant smile. Rei stared at him, a mixture of fear and embarrassment etched across his face. “Why are you always hiding?” Nagisa cocked his head to the side slightly and grabbed Rei’s arm. “If you wanna be friends, you can’t just creep around in the bushes, silly.” Nagisa tugged on Rei, causing the taller god to stumble forward out of the greenery. “You have to introduce yourself! My name is Nagisa! What’s yours?”

Rei stared at the blond, at a loss for what to say. He had not anticipated being found out. Rei felt his cheeks heat and quickly adjusted his glasses to hide his face.

“Do you really not know who I am?” Rei asked at last, silently berated himself for such a pitiful response.

“Of course I do!” Nagisa replied with a laugh. “But that’s not how introductions work, Mr. Lord of the Underworld.” Nagisa stuck his tongue out playfully. “Let’s try this again,” Nagisa held out his hand with great flourish, “I’m Nagisa.” He wiggled the fingers on his outstretched hand. Rei stared at the hand for a moment before delicately grasping it.

“I am Rei,” he offered.

“Hi Rei-chan!” Nagisa shook his hand enthusiastically in response, throwing Rei off balance slightly.

“Rei-chan?” Rei gawked. “Please do not address me so casually, we are not that close!”

“Oh? Not even after all the stalking you did?” Rei blanched and dropped Nagisa’s hand instantaneously. “I thought that counted for something,” Nagisa pouted, peering up at Rei with his tourmaline eyes glinting mischievously.

“I was not stalking you!” Rei spluttered, waving his arms in front of himself defensively. Nagisa shot him a dubious look.

“Really? Then what do you call following me, creeping around, hiding in bushes, sending henchmen to keep tabs.” Rei fumbled for a rebuttal. Nagisa tapped him on the nose while sporting a broad grin. “You totally stalked me.” Nagisa laughed as a bright blush blossomed over Rei’s cheeks. “Lucky for me, my stalker turned out to be pretty cute.”

Nagisa winked at Rei. Rei took a step backwards and adjusted his glasses again.

"I apologize for my actions. I shall refrain from harassing you in the future."

"You weren't _really_ harassing me," Nagisa corrected. "I mean, you weren't even talking to me until just now!"

"Either way," Rei took another step backwards and began to turn from Nagisa. He stopped when Nagisa grabbed his arm.

"And where do you think you're going?" Nagisa asked with a sweet smile. Rei glanced over his shoulder at Nagisa.

"I should return-"

"Is there an emergency?"

"No," Rei responded without thinking. When Nagisa's smile grew into a wide grin, Rei realized his mistake.

"Then there's no reason for you to go."

“Yes, well- Er, that is to say- You see I must-”

Nagisa skipped forward, leaving little space between their bodies. Rei squawked at their sudden proximity, but Nagisa didn’t seem to notice.

“You went through all that trouble of stalking me, and now you won’t even talk to me?” He peered up at Rei with a pout. “You sure know how to make a god feel special.”

“You are special!” Nagisa’s eyes widened slightly. Rei fought the urge to let the ground swallow him up as he realized what he had yelled. And yet, he couldn’t seem to stop talking. “You are beautiful. You are beautiful and vivacious and perhaps somewhat childish, but also intelligent, and you are kind and friendly even knowing that I stalked you and nothing about what you make me feel is remotely logical and that drove me crazy at first but now it just leaves me feeling vaguely queasy and yet I don’t seem to mind and oh gods I really need to stop talking.”

Nagisa stared at Rei, his lips parted and face flushed. Rei looked away from Nagisa, utterly embarrassed at the completely unbeautiful word-vomit he spewed forth moments ago. Nagisa said nothing and Rei started mentally berating himself for not heeding Sera’s warning and wishing fervently that he had never met Nagisa that day in the field, only the way his stomach dropped signalled that that wasn’t true in the least, but he really wished he could take back that embarrassing stream of consciousness at least. Rei opened his mouth to apologize, or scream, or something, he wasn’t quite sure what, but before he could discover how his brain planned to betray him next, Nagisa spoke.

“I was just teasing you, but, um, thanks, I guess,” Nagisa said shyly, fidgeting with his hem as he spoke. Neither spoke for a moment. The silence stretched on and Rei grew increasingly nervous. He was preparing to head straight back to the underworld when Nagisa tentatively grasped his hand. “Don’t go yet.” Rei froze, then nodded slowly. “Give me a minute, okay?” Rei nodded again. Nagisa laughed nervously. “Sorry. Just, wow, that’s a lot for a guy to take in.” Rei looked down at his feet as his face burned with a myriad of emotions.

“I apologize, I am not sure what-”

“No, no, no! Don’t apologize! You were very straightforward and honest and I really like that.” Rei scoffed slightly. “No! It’s true!” Nagisa insisted. “It’s endearing.” Rei was about to list all the reasons why Nagisa was completely wrong on that matter, but Nagisa seemed to sense it and squeezed Rei’s arm. Rei’s argument died on his lips.

“Come pick flowers with me,” Nagisa suggested, leaning into Rei. Rei stared at Nagisa, completely at a loss for how to respond. There were at least a dozen reasons why it was a terrible idea. But Nagisa was hugging his arm and looking up at him and it was suddenly hard to breathe and-

“Please?” Nagisa asked softly, looking suddenly unsure. “It’ll be way more fun than just watching me from back here.”

Rei nodded slowly, ignoring the feeling that this was a terrible idea.

“Really, Rei-chan? You mean it?”

Rei nodded again.

Nagisa smiled up at him, and that feeling was even easier to ignore.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. I have large chunks of this fic already written, but this section was giving me trouble for a while. I'm hoping to have the next chapter up far sooner.


	4. Third Episode

Rei began visiting Nagisa with more frequency. Well. If he were being completely honest, he actually visited Nagisa with _less_ frequency than when he was stalking the other god. But Rei would never admit to such. Though his bright red blush surely gave him away when Nagisa pointed it out during one of their meetings. Nagisa’s mirthful laughter helped ease the embarrassment.

Rei started bringing Nagisa small tokens of affection. Again, he would deny that was indeed their purpose. But Nagisa had more than enough suitors to recognize attempts to woo him. Each time Rei brought him something, Nagisa beamed with gratitude and perhaps a bit of fondness. Many has tried to win his affection, but none were quite as adorably awkward as the god of the underworld. Rei would start off strong, exuding determination and confidence as he approached Nagisa. But a cheerful “Rei-chan!” was often enough to throw him off his game. And the invasion of personal space and casual touching that usually followed was guaranteed to turn Rei into a stuttering, fumbling, blushing mess. His words came out jumbled. His movements were either super robotic or super flaily, and both outcomes made Nagisa giggle either way.

The gifts started out simple enough. Flowers. Food. Surprise excursions to mortal festivals (which they attended in disguise, of course). And then one day, Rei brought Nagisa a tourmaline crystal. Nagisa gasped as he took the pink and green gem into his hand. He peered up at Rei, who was, sure enough, a delightful shade of pink himself.

“It’s beautiful.”

“It- it reminded me of your eyes,” Rei responded clumsily, adjusting his glasses in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.

“Rei-chan,” he murmured almost reverently. “I- I don’t know what to say. This is way too much.”

“I only meant that-  I should have anticipated that-  I did not intend to-” Rei rambled, preparing to disappear to the underworld and hide for approximately a thousand years. Or perhaps more realistically, a few months. ...Okay at least a week or two, surely he could resist the pull of Nagisa for that long. “I apologize, perhaps I should-”

“No, wait!” Nagisa clung to Rei’s arm, causing him to freeze. “Don’t go and disappear. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just wasn’t expecting…”

“I understand. I overstepped my bounds. I apologize for-” Nagisa laughed.

“Oh my gods Rei-chan, I swear all you do is apologize. It’s okay. Really. You didn’t do anything worth freaking out over.”

“I am not freaking out,” Rei replied stubbornly.

“You’re freaking out a little bit.” Rei clamped his mouth shut tight, lest he accidentally agree; Nagisa had a way of making him say things he never intended vocalizing, even if they were true. The two of them stood in silence for a few moments, Rei desperately trying not to panic, or break into a nervous sweat over the prolonged contact; Nagisa chewing on his lip thoughtfully.

“Let’s go somewhere new today,” Nagisa chirped suddenly, surprising Rei out of his stupor.

“Pardon?’

“Let’s go visit the underworld.”

“ ** _What?!_** ” Rei squawked.

“Let’s visit the underworld,” Nagisa repeated.

“I heard you the first time! How on earth could you suggest something like that so _casually_!” Nagisa shrugged.

“I’ve always wondered what it was like, so you should show it to me.”

“Why on earth would you wonder something like that!”

“Why wouldn’t I? Hardly anyone ever gets to pop in for a visit, aside from, like, Ai or that half god Sousuke.”

“Sousuke did _not_ drop it, and Ai is the messenger, so of course he-” Rei shook his head, as if clearing it. “We are not having this argument. I am not taking you to the underworld.”

“Awe, why not?”

“Because.”

“Because isn’t a reason.”

“Because I said no.”

“You sound like a mom.”

“I am not taking you there,” Rei repeated, carefully detached Nagisa from his arm. He made a pointed effort to avoid Nagisa’s gaze.

“Please?’

“No.”

“Pretty please?”

“No.”

“Pretty, _pretty_ please?”

“No, I will not-” Rei made the mistake of looking down. He felt his resolve wavering. “Nagisa-”

“Just for a few minutes? You can pick which parts to show me. I promise not to tell anyone.”

“ _Why?_ ”

Nagisa shrugged. “Why not?”

“There are countless reasons ‘why not’,” Rei countered. Rei’s mind was reeling. What was _wrong_ with Nagisa? How could he even think this was remotely reminiscent of a good idea?

“I told you: I’m curious.” Nagisa seemed to sense Rei was close to caving and stepped right in front of Rei, leaning in so that he was nearly pressing against Rei. “It’s not like it’ll kill me or anything.” Rei stared at him in horror. Nagisa rolled his eyes. “Oh come on, you know it takes a lot more than a few minutes in the underworld to kill a god.”

“Be that as it may,” Rei sighed, defeated. “You would be satisfied with just a few minutes?” Nagisa perked up.

“Yeah!” he replied energetically. “I mean, it’d be cool to stay longer, but I’ll take what I can get. Omygods Rei-chan, are you _really_ gonna take me?”

“I really shouldn’t-” Nagisa’s face fell. “But I suppose a few moments couldn’t hurt.” Nagisa lit right back up, throwing his arms around Rei and nuzzling into his chest.

“You’re the best,” he exclaimed in a rushed breath. Rei felt himself heat up again while butterflies flitted around his gut.

“B-but not tonight,” he managed, hands awkwardly hanging midair. Would it be improper to place them on the shorter god’s back? He had initiated the contact but still.

“That’s fine," Nagisa agreed before looking up at Rei with a playful grin. “You probably have skeletons to clear out of your closet and all.”

Nagisa’s laughter at Rei’s response overpowered any argument he attempted to make.


	5. Fourth Episode

Nagisa couldn’t help but be a little bit giddy. It was (finally!) the day that Rei was going to show him the underworld. When he had asked, Nagisa had only half-expected Rei to agree- it _was_ a pretty ridiculous request, after all. But it wasn’t fair that Rei knew so much about Nagisa when Nagisa knew next to nothing about him, aside from the usual gossip. Rei was _really_ good at deflecting questions about himself, and it’s not like Nagisa had the option of stalking like Rei did. So, really, visiting the underworld was the best plan Nagisa had come up with.

Nagisa knew Rei wouldn’t want to show him the Vale of Mourning or the Fields of Punishment, and while there was a chance Nagisa would get to see the Fields of Asphodel or maybe even Elysium, Nagisa could tell that Rei took his job seriously. Which meant the only place left to show Nagisa was Rei’s palace. Well, unless there were other secret spots in the underworld that no one but Rei knew about. But Rei would probably take Nagisa there too, if he asked, because, good gods, was Rei crazy about him.

Nagisa smiled to himself, stomach fluttering slightly at the thought. Rei was definitely different from the other suitors that tried to court him. From the first time they met, when Nagisa nearly bowled him over in the fields of Nysa, there was something about Rei that drew Nagisa in. He probably should have been more creeped out when Rei was stalking him, but Nagisa never felt uneasy under the other’s gaze, and he was pretty good at reading people, so it really didn’t bother him at all. Other than the fact Rei stalking him made it hard to be friends with him. And Nagisa just knew he needed to be friends with Rei.

Early for once in his life, Nagisa fiddled with his necklace as he waited, pulling the pendant back and forth over the delicate gold chain. He smiled a little wider and fought the urge to giggle as he imagined Rei’s response upon seeing the necklace.

Nagisa felt the ground vibrate, jolting him out of his daydream. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw movement and he quickly turned his head towards it. The ground was splitting open, leaving a large, jagged hole in its wake. A pillar of earth suddenly jutted out from the depths with Rei standing atop it. Nagisa waved, but Rei didn’t seem to notice. He stepped off of the pillar and with a sweep of his arm, the ground mended itself. Nagisa heard Rei mumbling to himself.

“Hi Rei-chan!” Nagisa chirped loudly with a big wave. Rei whipped his head toward Nagisa, visibly startled by his presence.

“Nagisa!” he squawked before clearing his throat and adjusting his glasses. He looked significantly more composed when his hand left his frames. “I apologize, I did not expect you to be here so early,” he began walking towards Nagisa, “were you waiting long?” Nagisa shook his head.

“Nope! I just got here not too long ago,” Nagisa fibbed, dropping his pendant against his chest. The movement caught Rei’s attention and his eyes honed in on Nagisa’s necklace. His eyes widened. Nagisa beamed. “Oh! Do you like my necklace?” he asked innocently, puffing his chest out to show it off.

“Nagisa, is that…?” Rei took a step closer, convinced he was seeing wrong.

“It’s the tourmaline crystal you gave me. I had Goro make it into a necklace for me. Isn’t it great!”

“You had it made into a necklace?” Rei asked in disbelief. Nagisa’s smile faltered.

“Was that okay?” he asked nervously, worried he did something wrong. Rei’s whipped his head up and was quick to reassure Nagisa.

“Yes, yes, of course. I gave you the crystal, of course you were free to do with it what you wished. I just cannot believe- I did not anticipate-” Rei fumbled over his words, cheeks coloring as he did. Nagisa smiled again.

“It’s so pretty, I thought it would be a waste to just have it sit on the shelf or something. Now that it’s a necklace everyone can see how pretty it is!”

“It looks beautiful,” Rei said sincerely. Nagisa blushed; he knew Rei was complimenting more than the pendant. After a few moments under Rei’s gaze, Nagisa started to feel embarrassed and fidgety.

“So, um, we still gonna go to the Underworld, or, uh…”

“Oh!” Rei looked away, cheeks tingeing pink. “Right. If you are ready?”

“Definitely!”

“I must apologize in advance, our transportation into the Underworld won’t be the smoothest, but there are not many options for visits such as this.”

“That’s fine! I’ll just hang on to you reeeal tight then!”

“Take my hand then,” Rei instructed, holding out his arm. Nagisa eagerly grabbed it, intertwining their fingers. He smiled up at Rei.

“Okay! Ready!” Rei nodded, then waved his free arm. The ground shook and groaned as it was torn open, leaving a wide gash in the field. Rei carefully guided Nagisa to a section of earth at the edge of the crevice.

“Don’t let go,” Rei instructed.

“I won’t!” Nagisa promised, vibrating with excitement. It was actually happening! He was actually going to see where Rei lived! Rei was way too serious about his job to take anyone on random tours, but he was about to take Nagisa just because Nagisa _asked._ Nagisa felt bub

bly inside, and then he felt his stomach fly into his throat as the earth they stood upon suddenly descended. He gripped Rei tighter, feeling only the tiniest bit afraid as the ground closed up above them, surrounding them in darkness.

He must have squeezed his eyes shut at some point, because when he felt the earth stop moving he heard Rei tell him, “You can open your eyes now.” He opened them slowly, squinting slightly at the brighter-than-expected lighting around them. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah.” He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. “Sorry, just give me a sec to adjust.”

“Absolutely. Take your time.” Rei continued holding his hand and that made the good bubbly feeling come back. Nagisa opened his eyes slowly. He blinked several times at the building before him.

“Is that your house?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yes, this is where I spend my time when not working.”

“It’s so small!” he gasped. Nagisa had expecting a grand estate like Rin’s on Mount Olympus, but instead he was met with a cozy looking cottage. Rei flushed and looked away in embarrassment. “Oh no, no, no! I didn’t mean it in a bad way!” Nagisa quickly assured, mentally kicking himself for being so rude. “I love your house! It’s so cute!”

“It is rather quaint, however, I find that had adequate space to suit my needs.” Rei glanced at Nagisa nervously. “I know you are accustomed to better, so if you would like to return-”

“Rei-chan, stop. Don’t be so silly! You’re house is wonderful. It totally suits you. You should definitely show me around.” Nagisa squeezed Rei’s hand.

“If you are certain…” Rei lead Nagisa to his home, detailing the architectural features of the home as he did. Nagisa nodded enthusiastically and ‘ooo’ed and ‘ahh’ed at all the right points. As Rei lead them into the house itself, Nagisa’s stomach gurgled loudly. Rei looked at Nagisa, startled.

“Rei-chaaaaaan,” Nagisa whined, latching onto Rei’s arm. “I’m hungry. Aren’t you gonna offer me something to eat?”

“That is the last thing I am going to do,” he replied indignantly.

“But you always feed me on our dates,” Nagisa countered.

“I do no such thing.” Wait. “ _Dates?_ ” Rei croaked. Nagisa giggled.

“What _else_ would you call bringing me gifts and taking me places? Are you trying to tell me that you _weren’t_ courting me? That you don’t think I’m the most gorgeous god and that you don’t want to kiss me and that you don’t do everything I say and that you wouldn’t start a war on my behalf?”

“ _War?!_ ” Rei guaffed, looking as if his brain short-circuited. “And you can’t just say-!” Nagisa giggled again, fluttering his eyelashes as he peered up at Rei innocently, lips curved into a pout.

“Feed me?” Rei’s heart stuttered.

“I-” Rei felt himself about to give in when he realized just how dangerous Nagisa’s request was. “No!” he screeched. He cleared his throat. “No,” he repeated firmly.

“So stingy,” Nagisa sighed.

“It is for your own good,” Rei asserted.

“Pleeeeeease? Com’on Rei-chan, it’s not like a snack is going to kill me!” Rei opened his mouth in rebuttal, but he was interrupted by a knock. “Oooo! Who’s that, Rei-chan? Did you invite friends over to meet me? Are we having a party?”

“No, we most certainly are _not_. You’re not even supposed to be here,” Rei reminded him with a hiss “Now, please, stay quiet.” Rei opened the door.

“My lord?”

“Ah, Sera,” he spoke levelly, though his small frown revealed his displeasure.

“I am very sorry to interrupt my lord when you have a guest,” Rei looked over his shoulder to find Nagisa sitting in a chair in plain view of the door, waving enthusiastically at Sera. Sera waved back politely, making Nagisa smile broadly. Rei sighed.

“I would kindly request that this stay between us.”

“Of course my lord. Again, I apologize, but you presence is required presently.”

“You are quite certain it cannot wait?”

“I am afraid Mikoshiba is causing problems.” Rei kneaded his temples.

“Which head?”

“Seijuro and Momotarou.”

“Naturally,” he grumbled. “I should have known. And the last?”

“She’s staying out of it.” Rei nodded.

“I wise decision, no doubt. It is a pity that she must share a body with those two.” Reii turned his attention back to Nagisa. “I apologize Nagisa-kun, but I must attend to this. I will be back as soon as possible. I apologize for not giving you a proper tour, but the bookshelves are filled with books on a variety of subjects; I am sure you will find something of interest. Please do not rummage through my belongings.” Nagisa beamed at the taller boy.

“‘Kay,” Nagisa replied, kicking his feet happily. Rei eyed him warily.

“And please, whatever you do, you mustn’t eat anything in this house.”

“So mean,” he complained, feet never stilling.

“It is for your own safety Nagisa,” Rei repeated.

“Yeah yeah. Go yell at your puppy.”

“Nagisa,” Rei warned.

“Go. I’ll be fine.” Rei nodded, content with Nagisa’s response.

“Please excuse me.” Nagisa nodded as the blue haired boy took his leave.

Nagisa waited a few minutes, to make sure Rei wasn’t going to come back and catch him and lecture him, before rising from the chair, humming happily as he scoped out the room. Telling Nagisa _not_ to do something was a sure fire way to _get_ him to do something. So where to snoop first?

He examined the art on the walls, and picked up trinkets, and flipped through books on the shelf, and even discovered a secret compartment in Rei’ headboard! He didn’t have anything to pick the lock with though; he needed to find the key. He looked in the potted plants and crawled under the bed and even felt around under the desk, in case the key was taped there. The key wasn’t in any of those places. So Nagisa was left with no choice but to dig through the drawers.

Nagisa was unusually careful shifting things around, not wanting Rei to know he went through his stuff. At least, not until he left. Nagisa looked first through the desk, finding no key, but finding instead something even _better._ Nagisa squealed as he pulled a small, sheer pouch from the top right drawer. Inside were a handful of, what looked like, and smelled like, chocolates. Rei has been holding out on him! Not cool.

Nagisa opened the satchel delicately, reverently, selected a smooth, delicious-looking pearl and popped it into their mouth. The dark chocolate quickly started to melt in his mouth. He would have preferred milk chocolate, but any kind chocolate was certainly welcome.

He bit down, expecting to easily split the candy in half. To his surprise, he met some resistance. “A pomegranate seed?” he guessed as it crunched between his teeth. He carefully chewed the rest of the sweet before eating a second one. To confirm his suspicions of course. Not because he had a massive sweet tooth or anything.

Yup. They were definitely pomegranate seeds.

He went back to nosing around, eating more chocolates as he went. He found Rei’s “journal” (which he didn’t read-- he had some integrity after all!), and a box of old photos, and drawer full of butterfly adornments. And when he found a ridiculous amount of moisturizers and creams and gels and hair styling tools, Nagisa couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up and spilled from his lips. Who knew the God of the Underworld was so concerned with appearances?

“I thought I asked you not to rummage, Nagisa?” Rei admonished, though his tone was light.

“Rei, you’re sure giving Kisumi a run for his money when it comes to vanity!” Nagisa teased, clutching his stomach and dropping the bag of chocolates in the process. Rei adjusted his glasses in an attempt to hide the blossoming blush spreading across his face.

“Just because I appreciate beauty-” Rei stopped abruptly, eyes locked on the satchel and candies strewn across the floor. “Nagisa. Please tell me you didn’t…” his voice trailed off. Nagisa’s mirth faded at Rei suddenly sullen tone.

“Didn’t what? Are you feeling okay, Rei?”

“Please tell me you didn’t eat any of those.” He gestured to the chocolates.

“Oh.” Nagisa fidgeted with the hem of his tunic. “I kinda did,” he answered guiltily.

“Kinda?” Rei asked. His expression looked very far away.

“I only ate few. I didn’t expect you like sweets, so I didn’t think it was a big deal, but that’s not a good reason at all and I can totally replace them.” Rei hadn’t said a word. “Rei?” he asked timidly.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Rei’ voice was low and controlled; Nagisa could sense the anger that lay just under the surface.

“I know I shouldn’t have snooped or taken your candy, but don’t you think-”

“I told you not to eat anything.”

“No, you didn’t,” Nagisa interrupted, voice growing louder in anger. “You just told me that you wouldn’t feed me.”

“That is the same thing!”

“It’s not the same thing! You can be mad at me for stealing food, but you can’t be mad at me for eating it. Now why the hell is me eating some candies such a big deal?”

“Because now you-” Rei anger suddenly dissipated and was replaced with despondency. “Now you can’t leave.”

“Can’t leave?” Nagisa frowned. “Don’t you think you’re being a bit dramatic? I said I’d replace-”

“You ate food in the Underworld. It binds you to this realm.”

“Oh.” Whoops. Nagisa chewed his lip thoughtfully. “Like, forever? I can’t ever leave, ever?”

“How many seeds did you eat?” Nagisa wracked his brain.

“I- I don’t remember. Not a lot. I don’t think…”

“Without an exact number, I am not sure how long you are bound here.” Nagisa frowned at how distraught Rei appeared. Nagisa moved to stand next to the bespectacled god.

“Hey, it’ll be okay, Rei,” he assured.

“You are stuck here! In the Underworld! How is that possibly okay?” His voice sounded just short of hysterical. Nagisa took his hand in his own.

“Because I’m with you,” he replied, weaving his fingers between Rei’s. “I know it will be okay because you’ll take care of me because you love me.” Rei stared at their interlocked hands fondly.

“I don-”  Nagisa shot him a look. "I- I do,” he confessed quietly.

“It’s a little soon to get married, don’t you think, Rei?” Nagisa joked. Rei dropped Nagisa’s hand immediately.

“That is not what I- I only meant-” he spluttered. Nagisa laughed.

“I’m teasing, Rei.” He pulled Rei closer and nuzzling his chest. “I like you a lot, Rei. And I plan on loving you one day. And now I’ll get to spend everyday with you and get to know you really, really well and I’ll fall in love even faster!” He peered up at Rei. “So everything will be okay, Rei. Okay?”

Rei looked down at Nagisa, searching for his answer in Nagisa’s face.

“Okay,” he found himself agreeing, surprising himself. Rei had numerous concerns about the situation they found themselves in, but Nagisa’s assurance was intoxicating. The bright smile that greeted him in response was even more so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Up in time for [ReiGisa Week 3](http://reigisaweek.tumblr.com), day two's AU prompt. *fist pump* Nailed it.

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this ages ago because this idea would just not leave me alone. I figured I should try to finish it for the [ReiGisa Celebration](http://reigisacelebration.tumblr.com).


End file.
